Park Slope

Department of Transportation contractors put down the long-awaited Class III "Shared Lane" bicycle stencils on Brooklyn's Fifth Avenue this weekend. As I understand them, the markings are meant to do two things:

Word has come down that DOT is now aiming to install its new Class III Shared Lane bicycle stencils on Brooklyn's Fifth Avenue before the end of November. The markings are an interesting innovation for New York City in that they direct motorists and cyclists to share the middle of the road as equals. Drivers aren't supposed to blast their horns at cyclists riding in the travel lane and cyclists aren't supposed to try to slip in and out of the door-zone between moving traffic and parked cars. The City, in other words, is telling cyclists: Go ahead and take the travel lane on this street. It is yours. What do you think?

Last week we asked the Department of Transportation why the agency had not followed through on making safety improvements on the Fifth Avenue bike lane in Brooklyn by end-of-summer. DOT responded with a statement saying that "Share the Road" signs had, in fact, been installed and that, as part of the new citywide bike safety initiative announced two weeks ago, the agency was developing a new and improved way of marking "Class III" bike routes.

Earlier this week we asked why the Department of Transportation had not followed-through on its promise to fix up the Fifth Avenue bike lane in Brooklyn by end of summer. Ryan Russo, the agency's new Director for Street Management and Safety got back to us with this response:

"Study Finds the Potential Choke Points of Atlantic Yards"

Enjoy this bit of dialogue overheard on the renowned Park Slope Parents e-mail list. A mom pushing a stroller witnesses a bicyclist get hit by a car. Someone else confirms and adds to the story. Others jump in with their own stories of Brooklyn's unmitigated motor vehicle mayhem.

In the coming weeks I will be transitioning my blogging over to a new domain: Streetsblog. This new blog, supported by The Open Planning Project, will be covering the New York City Streets Renaissance Campaign on a daily basis. It will include other contributors as well. While the new site is in development, I will still be posting here at nap.com, so please stay tuned.